Maybe you just need a little money to make it to next payday. Are title pawn companies like TitleMax a good deal? Heck yeah....if you own stock or interest in that company. They seem to operate with impunity. It’s almost like they have a politician on the payroll. Well.... he is retired from politics now so I guess that is legal. I can say without reservation if you do business with any of these companies you will get ripped off. The exception might be if you just sell your car to them. I have seen them ‘loan’ quite a bit more than a car is worth. This is probably because they just want money. They don’t really care about the car and they don’t want it. Usually. The more they loan, the more interest they get at a rate that is staggering. Usually, it is well over 100%. They only want the title to the car so they can harass or scare you into paying. They pretty on folks that are barely getting by and need that car or truck to get back and forth to work so they can keep paying that absurd interest they will never get out from under. They do repo though. And will do so until you sell a kidney to get your car back....which they still probably own. This deal may also prevent you from saving your car in bankruptcy. With the lackluster public transportation, we have in much of this country, you will have no alternatives. Read my lips.... Once you do business with one of these companies.....you are F*#@$ed if you actually need that car. HERE is an interesting article from the Georgia Reporter.
So now that we all agree they are scum and we won’t engage with them, we have nothing to worry about right? Why should the ordinary middle-class consumer worry about these evil practices? Well....it turns out they might just steal your car. They call it repossessing, but I call it stealing when your lying a$$ doesn’t have any right to the vehicle. That is what happened to Henry Segura and Kurtis Melcher in Texas. They purchased a 2005 GMC Yukon XL at an auction by the Pasadena Police Department and received a Certificate of Title “without any liens or other encumbrances on December 6, 2017. That didn’t stop TitleMax though. A previous owner allegedly owed TitleMax money, so TitleMax called up their buddies at MVTrac who called up their buddies at NJC Asset Repo and ordered a repossession. Henry and Kurtis did the obvious thing when their truck was stolen, they called the cops who in turn got TitleMax to return the truck. Much like a pestilent child that tried to get the last word in, the car was returned with damage to the front and rear, and the transmission cable was disconnected. Also, just to show these consumers that TitleMax and their henchman won’t be outdone, in the process of returning it they damaged the driveway. That is customer service. I guess since these two were never customers of that dumpster fire, no need to treat them like human beings.
The good news is that a federal judge in Texas just said MVTrac is subject to the FDCPA for these actions. While not the end of the story, that is a huge hurdle and a big win for the two victims. If you are asking yourself how these companies aren’t regulated like it would seem they should be, just Google and see what political campaigns they are contributing to and for how much. See HERE and HERE as an example.
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